Book Review: Bon Appétit, Baby!

If a pregnant friend or loved
one already owns THE WOMANLY ART OF BREASTFEEDING, I can't think of
a better gift book than Bon Appétit, Baby! This beautifully
designed and well-written "kit" is part breastfeeding manual,
part journal, and part baby's growth-tracking system. The kit has a
durable design so it can be read often and written in, with a lovely,
durable hard cover, spiral-bound pages (cookbook style), plastic covered
section tabs, and a dual-colored pencil.

The first section of Bon
Appétit, Baby! is a practical and supportive guide to the
early weeks of breastfeeding. The first chapter, 'Breastfeeding Benefits
for Mother and Baby," offers strong breastfeeding encouragement
for the new mother, concluding that 'by nursing your baby you are laying
a strong foundation for all future development--during infancy and throughout
fife." Other chapters offer practical information on preparing
to breastfeed, latch-on and positioning, "warning signs" for
when to call a lactation specialist, expressing and storing milk, and
more. This includes many suggestions to use La Leche League as a support
system.

While the manual generally
reflects up-to-date and accurate breastfeeding information, there are
a few exceptions. For example, Moran states that "it is normal
for babies to lose up to 10 percent of their birth weight," while
the BREASTFFEDING ANSWER BOOK states that "a weight loss of approximately
5-7 percent is normal ... While a weight loss of 10 percent is considered
acceptable by some medical professionals, it is usually a sign that
the mother needs additional help with breastfeeding management".
Also, in an effort to show latch-on, the drawings have the baby lying
on his back in the cradle position while nursing, rather than tucked
in tummy-to-tummy with the mother. Aside from these few exceptions,
"The Practical Breastfeeding Manual" section is helpful, up-to-date,
and well-written.

The second section, "Nutrition
and Weight Loss for the Nursing Mother," discusses the importance
of gradual weight loss, offers a list of food exchanges based on the
USDA Food Guide Pyramid, includes a discussion of foods to limit or
avoid, and concludes with a section on gradually incorporating exercise
into your postpartum lifestyle. This section, paired with the "Nursing
Mother's Daily Nutrition Diary" in the following section, which
helps new mothers record their daily exercise, food, fluid, and supplement
intake, is a wonderful addition to a breastfeeding handbook.

The third section of Bon
Appétit, Baby! presents the "Nurse-N-Track System,"
a unique, trademarked system for documenting the first six weeks with
baby. On the facing pages of the mother's nutrition diary, Moran includes
a page for every day of the baby's first six weeks called "The
Nursing Baby's Daily Diary." Each page has two key components,
a 24-hour "Nursing Wheel, which is designed to keep track of abyss
nursing, sleeping and awake times, and a 24-hour "Diaper Wheel,"
which keeps track of wet and soiled diapers. There is also a section
on each page to indicate abyss weight, notable behaviors, and questions
for the baby's doctor.

Moran states that "recording
your nursing progress on paper will help put some order back in your
life and will set your mind at ease knowing that both you and your baby
are healthy and flourishing." Some mothers will never want or need
to use this section, but others who want the reassurance of a written
record, or dads who want a concrete way of helping in the early weeks,
will find this a helpful tool. If breastfeeding problems do occur, this
is a clear and easy way of tracking the abyss nursing, elimination,
and growth patterns. Mothers of multiples will also appreciate the charts
to help them keep track of their babies' growth.

The fourth section is a "New
Mother's Journal" with a section on the birth experience and lined
journal pages for each day of the baby's first six weeks. For those
of us who can never get around to filling in those extensive baby scrapbooks,
this provides a more succinct and manageable way to remember those early
days.

All in all, Bon Appétit,
Baby! is a beautiful, well-written, and unique book combining many
useful sections in one "kit" format. Expectant mothers in
the nesting phase will love the organizational help. LLL Groups that
choose to include it in their Group Libraries may wish to have plenty
of extra copies for sale, because the women who borrow it will be sorely
tempted to start using it!